Nuneaton and Bedworth
Nuneaton and Bedworth is a local government district with borough status, in northern Warwickshire, England, consisting of the towns of Nuneaton and Bedworth, the large village of Bulkington and the green belt land inbetween. It had a population ...
in northern
Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...
, England, close to the county border with
Leicestershire
Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...
and
West Midlands County
West Midlands is a metropolitan county in the West Midlands Region, England, with a 2021 population of 2,919,600, making it the second most populous county in England after Greater London. It was created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1 ...
.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : Nuneaton's population at the 2021 census was 94,634, an increase from 86,552 at the 2011 census making it the largest town in Warwickshire.
The author
George Eliot
Mary Ann Evans (22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880; alternatively Mary Anne or Marian), known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wro ...
was born on a farm on the Arbury Estate just outside Nuneaton in 1819 and lived in the town for much of her early life. Her novel ''
Scenes of Clerical Life
''Scenes of Clerical Life'' is George Eliot's first published work of fiction, a collection of three short stories, published in book form; it was the first of her works to be released under her famous pseudonym.
The stories were first publis ...
'' (1858) depicts Nuneaton. There is a hospital named after her, The
George Eliot Hospital
George Eliot Hospital is a single site hospital located in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, it is managed by the George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust. It provides a full range of emergency and elective medical services, including maternity services, to the loca ...
. There is also a statue of George Eliot in the town centre.
History
Early history
Nuneaton was originally an
Anglo-Saxon
The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...
settlement known as 'Etone' or 'Eaton', which translates literally as 'settlement by water', referring to the
River Anker
The River Anker is a river in England that flows through the centre of Nuneaton. It is a major tributary of the River Tame, which it joins in Tamworth. The name of the river derives from an old British term for ''winding river''. From source t ...
. 'Etone' was listed in the
Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
as a small farming settlement with a population of around 150. In the early 12th century, the settlement came under the control of the
Beaumont family
Beaumont may refer to:
Places Canada
* Beaumont, Alberta
* Beaumont, Quebec
England
* Beaumont, Cumbria
* Beaumont, Essex
** Beaumont Cut, a canal closed in the 1930s
* Beaumont Street, Oxford
France (communes)
* Beaumont, Ardèche
* ...
Abbey of Fontevraud
The Royal Abbey of Our Lady of Fontevraud or Fontevrault (in French: ''abbaye de Fontevraud'') was a monastery in the village of Fontevraud-l'Abbaye, near Chinon, in the former French duchy of Anjou. It was founded in 1101 by the itinerant preache ...
, who established a
Benedictine
, image = Medalla San Benito.PNG
, caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal
, abbreviation = OSB
, formation =
, motto = (English: 'Pray and Work')
, foun ...
nunnery
A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican C ...
here, which became known as
Nuneaton Priory
Nuneaton Priory was a medieval Benedictine monastic house in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England. It was initially founded by Robert de Beaumont and Gervase Paganell in 1153 at Kintbury in Berkshire as a daughter house of Fontevraud Abbey in Franc ...
. This led to Etone becoming known as Nuneaton. The nunnery was closed in 1539 during King Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries, and subsequently fell into ruin. However part of the Abbey church was rebuilt in the 19th and early 20th century.
Nuneaton obtained a
market
Market is a term used to describe concepts such as:
*Market (economics), system in which parties engage in transactions according to supply and demand
*Market economy
*Marketplace, a physical marketplace or public market
Geography
*Märket, an ...
charter in around 1160 from Henry II which was reconfirmed in 1226, causing Nuneaton to develop into a
market town
A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...
and become the economic focal point of the local villages.
In 1485, the
Battle of Bosworth
The Battle of Bosworth or Bosworth Field was the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses, the civil war between the houses of Lancaster and York that extended across England in the latter half of the 15th century. Fought on 22 Augu ...
, the last significant battle of the
Wars of the Roses
The Wars of the Roses (1455–1487), known at the time and for more than a century after as the Civil Wars, were a series of civil wars fought over control of the English throne in the mid-to-late fifteenth century. These wars were fought bet ...
occurred around to the north-west of Nuneaton, across the border in nearby
Leicestershire
Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...
King Edward VI
Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and King of Ireland, Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour ...
. The school was originally a fee-paying school, although the county council provided some scholarships, and became non-fee paying as a result of the education act of 1944. The
voluntary aided school
A voluntary aided school (VA school) is a state-funded school in England and Wales in which a foundation or trust (usually a religious organisation), contributes to building costs and has a substantial influence in the running of the school. In mo ...
had around 400 boys in the 1960s. In 1974 the
grammar school
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...
closed and was re-established as a
sixth form college
A sixth form college is an educational institution, where students aged 16 to 19 typically study for advanced school-level qualifications, such as A Levels, Business and Technology Education Council (BTEC) and the International Baccalaureate Di ...
.Paterson, David, (2011) ''Leeke's Legacy: A History of King Edward VI School, Nuneaton''. Matador Publishing
In 1543, Nuneaton was recorded as containing 169 houses, with a population of around 800, by 1670 this had grown to 415 households, with a population of 1,867, by 1740 this had risen further to 2,480.
The growth of industry
Ribbon weaving
In the mid-17th century, a
silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from the coc ...
ribbon
A ribbon or riband is a thin band of material, typically cloth but also plastic or sometimes metal, used primarily as decorative binding and tying. Cloth ribbons are made of natural materials such as silk, cotton, and jute and of synthetic mater ...
weaving industry became established in the local area which included Nuneaton,
Bedworth
Bedworth ( or locally ) is a market town and unparished area in the borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth, Warwickshire, England.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : It is situated between Coventry, 6 miles (9.5 km) to the south, a ...
,
Coventry
Coventry ( or ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its ...
and much of
North Warwickshire
North Warwickshire is a local government district with borough status in the ceremonial county of Warwickshire, West Midlands, England. Outlying settlements in the borough include the two towns of Atherstone (where the council is based) and Co ...
. This industry was enhanced by the arrival of French
Huguenot
The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...
immigrants in the latter part of the century, who brought with them new techniques. This industry operated as a
cottage industry
The putting-out system is a means of subcontracting work. Historically, it was also known as the workshop system and the domestic system. In putting-out, work is contracted by a central agent to subcontractors who complete the project via remote ...
, with the weavers working from top-shops; a type of building which was specific to the local area, and had living space in the two lower floors, and a workshop with very large windows on the top floor. This industry flourished for nearly two centuries, albeit with periodic booms and slumps. However, by the early 19th century the industry was struggling to compete against the
factory
A factory, manufacturing plant or a production plant is an industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with machinery, where workers manufacture items or operate machines which process each item into another. T ...
produced textiles from northern manufacturers, and the local weavers strongly resisted adopting factory production methods as they valued their independence. Nevertheless, in 1851 46% of Nuneaton's workforce was still employed by the ribbon trade. The industry was finally wiped out after 1860 by cheap imports, following the
Cobden–Chevalier Treaty
The Cobden–Chevalier Treaty was an Anglo-French free trade agreement signed between Great Britain and France on 23 January 1860. After Britain began free trade policies in 1846, there remained tariffs with France. The 1860 treaty ended tariffs o ...
, which removed duties on imported French silks. This caused a slump in the local economy which lasted nearly two decades.
Coal mining
Another major industry which grew in the local area was
coal mining
Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...
: as Nuneaton was located in the
Warwickshire coalfield
The Warwickshire Coalfield extends between Warwick and Tamworth in the English Midlands. It is about from north to south and its width is around half that distance. Its western margin is defined by the 'Western Boundary Fault'. In the northeast ...
, mining was recorded locally as early as 1338, however the lack of efficient transport and primitive mining techniques kept the industry on a small scale. The industry did not start to develop on a larger scale until the 17th century, with the dawn of the
industrial revolution
The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
, which led to greater demand for fuel and technical advancement. A major problem was the drainage of water from coal pits as they were dug deeper. The use of a
waterwheel
A water wheel is a machine for converting the energy of flowing or falling water into useful forms of power, often in a watermill. A water wheel consists of a wheel (usually constructed from wood or metal), with a number of blades or buckets ...
to drive drainage
pump
A pump is a device that moves fluids (liquids or gases), or sometimes slurries, by mechanical action, typically converted from electrical energy into hydraulic energy. Pumps can be classified into three major groups according to the method they u ...
s was recorded as early as 1683. The first recorded use of an atmospheric engine; a primitive form of
steam engine
A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a cylinder. This pushing force can be trans ...
to pump water from coal pits was recorded at Griff Colliery in 1714, this was the first recorded use of a steam engine in Warwickshire. Nevertheless, another major problem facing the industry was poor transport. Sir Roger Newdigate who owned several local coal mines developed a turnpike road to Coventry in the 1750s, which partially resolved this problem. Early on Newdigate recognised the potential of
canal
Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flow un ...
s as a means for transporting bulk cargoes. He developed a system of private canals on his land on the Arbury Estate from 1764 to transport coal and helped promote the
Coventry Canal
The Coventry Canal is a navigable narrow canal in the Midlands of England.
It starts in Coventry and ends to the north at Fradley Junction, just north of Lichfield, where it joins the Trent and Mersey Canal. It also has connections with the ...
, which opened from Coventry to Nuneaton in 1769, before being finally completed to
Staffordshire
Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...
in 1790. he also helped promote the
Oxford Canal
The Oxford Canal is a narrowboat canal in central England linking the City of Oxford with the Coventry Canal at Hawkesbury (just north of Coventry and south of Bedworth) via Banbury and Rugby. Completed in 1790, it connects to the River Thame ...
. Ironically, the new canal system led to a decline in the Warwickshire coal industry after 1800, as it was exploited by Staffordshire coal producers to capture the local market. It would not be until the development of the
railway
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
network in the 19th century that the coal industry would be exploited to its maximum potential.
The first railway to reach Nuneaton was the
Trent Valley Railway
The Trent Valley line is a railway line between Rugby and Stafford in England, forming part of the West Coast Main Line. It is named after the River Trent which it follows. The line was built to provide a direct route from London to North Wes ...
which opened in 1847, linking Nuneaton to the growing national railway network at
Rugby
Rugby may refer to:
Sport
* Rugby football in many forms:
** Rugby league: 13 players per side
*** Masters Rugby League
*** Mod league
*** Rugby league nines
*** Rugby league sevens
*** Touch (sport)
*** Wheelchair rugby league
** Rugby union: 1 ...
and
Stafford
Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It lies about north of Wolverhampton, south of Stoke-on-Trent and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 70,145 in t ...
. This was followed by a branch line to Coventry in 1850. In 1864 a line was opened from Birmingham to Leicester via Nuneaton, and this proved to be the most important for the local economy, as it linked Nuneaton with the rapidly growing town (later city) of
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
. Due largely to this, the local coal industry expanded rapidly in the latter half of the 19th century, with production from the Warwickshire coalfield expanding nearly tenfold between 1860 and 1913 from around 545,000 tons to over five million tons. The industry peaked in the early 20th century; in 1911 one third of the male workforce in Nuneaton were employed as miners. The industry, however, declined rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s, with the last coal mine in Nuneaton closing in 1968, although Newdigate colliery at Bedworth lasted until 1982. The last Warwickshire coal mine at nearby
Daw Mill
Daw Mill was a coal mine located near the village of Arley, near Nuneaton, in the English county of Warwickshire. The mine was Britain's biggest coal producer. It closed in 2013 following a major fire. It was the last remaining colliery in the W ...
closed in 2013.
Other industries
Nuneaton underwent a period of rapid growth from the 1880s onwards with the rapid development of an array of industries. These included
brick
A brick is a type of block used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a block composed of dried clay, but is now also used informally to denote other chemically cured cons ...
and
tile
Tiles are usually thin, square or rectangular coverings manufactured from hard-wearing material such as ceramic, stone, metal, baked clay, or even glass. They are generally fixed in place in an array to cover roofs, floors, walls, edges, or o ...
making,
brewing
Brewing is the production of beer by steeping a starch source (commonly cereal grains, the most popular of which is barley) in water and #Fermenting, fermenting the resulting sweet liquid with Yeast#Beer, yeast. It may be done in a brewery ...
, the production of
hat
A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
s and leather goods. and
engineering
Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...
. At the time of the first national census in 1801 Nuneaton was one of the largest towns in Warwickshire, with a population of 5,135. By 1901 this had grown to 24,996.
Civic history
A
local board of health
Local boards or local boards of health were local authorities in urban areas of England and Wales from 1848 to 1894. They were formed in response to cholera epidemics and were given powers to control sewers, clean the streets, regulate environmenta ...
had been set up in Nuneaton in 1848 to provide the town with necessary infrastructure such as paved roads, clean drinking water, street lighting and sewerage. The old
parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
of Nuneaton included the settlements of Attleborough and
Stockingford
Stockingford is a suburb of the town of Nuneaton, in the county of Warwickshire, England, about west of the town centre.
Stockingford first appeared in records in 1157, named ''Stoccingford'', derived from the Old English ''Stocc''; to root up t ...
. The parish was joined with
Chilvers Coton
Chilvers Coton is an area of the town of Nuneaton in Warwickshire, England, around one mile south of the town centre.
Chilvers Coton was historically a village and civil parish in its own right and was mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as ...
parish in 1894 to form an
urban district
Urban district may refer to:
* District
* Urban area
* Quarter (urban subdivision)
* Neighbourhood
Specific subdivisions in some countries:
* Urban districts of Denmark
* Urban districts of Germany
* Urban district (Great Britain and Ireland) (hist ...
. Nuneaton was upgraded to the status of a
municipal borough
Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...
in 1907, to which the parishes of Weddington and part of Caldecote were added in 1931. In 1974, the Municipal Borough of Nuneaton was merged with
Bedworth
Bedworth ( or locally ) is a market town and unparished area in the borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth, Warwickshire, England.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : It is situated between Coventry, 6 miles (9.5 km) to the south, a ...
Urban District to create the Borough of
Nuneaton and Bedworth
Nuneaton and Bedworth is a local government district with borough status, in northern Warwickshire, England, consisting of the towns of Nuneaton and Bedworth, the large village of Bulkington and the green belt land inbetween. It had a population ...
.
Second World War
Nuneaton suffered heavy bombing damage during
The Blitz
The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'.
The Germa ...
in the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
between 1940 and 1942. The heaviest bombing raid on Nuneaton took place on 17 May 1941, when 130 people were killed, 380 houses were destroyed, and over 10,000 damaged.
Postwar to present
In 1947 the architect and town planner
Frederick Gibberd
Sir Frederick Ernest Gibberd (7 January 1908 – 9 January 1984) was an English architect, town planner and landscape designer. He is particularly known for his work in Harlow, Essex, and for the BISF house, a design for a prefabricated council ...
was appointed to create a masterplan to redevelop the bomb damaged town centre. The redevelopment, which continued until the 1960s included the features typical of town planning from that era, including a new ringroad, indoor shopping centre, administrative centre and library.
Nuneaton continued to expand in the latter 20th century. In the early postwar years the need arose for low-cost housing, and in response to this around 2,500
council house
A council house is a form of British public housing built by local authorities. A council estate is a building complex containing a number of council houses and other amenities like schools and shops. Construction took place mainly from 1919 ...
s were built during the 1950s, the largest such development was at Camp Hill, where 1,400 new houses were built by 1956, while around 1,100 new council houses were built at new estates at Hill Top, Caldwell and Marston Lane by 1958. Following this, Nuneaton's expansion was largely driven by private developments at Weddington,
St Nicolas Park
St Nicolas Park is a suburban area of Nuneaton in Warwickshire, central England. It is a large housing estate, built between the 1960s and the 1990s. It is situated on the north-eastern edge of Nuneaton, close to the A5 (Watling Street) and appr ...
Stockingford
Stockingford is a suburb of the town of Nuneaton, in the county of Warwickshire, England, about west of the town centre.
Stockingford first appeared in records in 1157, named ''Stoccingford'', derived from the Old English ''Stocc''; to root up t ...
.
Historic population
Geography
Nuneaton is north of
Coventry
Coventry ( or ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its ...
, east of
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
, south-west of
Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city l ...
and northwest of
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
.OS Landranger Map 139 : Birmingham & Wolverhampton: (1:50 000) OS Landranger Map 140 : Leicester, Coventry & Rugby: (1:50 000)
The town centre lies south-west of the
Leicestershire
Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...
border (which is defined by the
A5 road
A5 Road may refer to:
;Africa
*A5 highway (Nigeria), a road connecting Lagos and Ibadan
* A5 road (Zimbabwe), a road connecting Harare and Francistown
;Americas
* Quebec Autoroute 5, a road in Quebec, Canada
* County Route A5 (California) or Bowm ...
the former Roman
Watling Street
Watling Street is a historic route in England that crosses the River Thames at London and which was used in Classical Antiquity, Late Antiquity, and throughout the Middle Ages. It was used by the ancient Britons and paved as one of the main R ...
), south-east of
Staffordshire
Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...
, and south-south-east from
Derbyshire
Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...
’s southernmost point.
The
River Anker
The River Anker is a river in England that flows through the centre of Nuneaton. It is a major tributary of the River Tame, which it joins in Tamworth. The name of the river derives from an old British term for ''winding river''. From source t ...
runs through the town. Nuneaton town centre was historically prone to regular flooding from the Anker, with especially bad floods in 1932 and 1968. This was relieved in 1976 by the construction of a
flood relief channel
Flood control channels are large and empty basins which let water flow in and out (except during flooding) or dry channels that run below the street levels of some larger cities, so that if and when a flood occurs, the water will run into these ch ...
.
Nuneaton forms the largest part of the Nuneaton built-up area which also includes the large villages of
Hartshill
Hartshill is a large village and civil parish in North Warwickshire, England, 2.5 miles (4 km) north-west of the town of Nuneaton. The parish borders the district of Nuneaton and Bedworth at the south, the North Warwickshire district parishes ...
and
Bulkington
Bulkington is a large village and former civil parish, now in the unparished area of Bedworth, in the Nuneaton and Bedworth district of Warwickshire, England.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : In the 2011 census the wa ...
. It had a population of 132,236 at the 2001 Census. In the 2011 Census it had a considerably lower population of 92,698 because
Hinckley
Hinckley is a market town in south-west Leicestershire, England. It is administered by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council. Hinckley is the third largest settlement in the administrative county of Leicestershire, after Leicester and Loughbor ...
ceased to be defined as part of the urban area. On 19 July 2022, it recorded its highest ever temperature of 38 °C during the 2022 United Kingdom heat wave.
Towns close to Nuneaton include
Bedworth
Bedworth ( or locally ) is a market town and unparished area in the borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth, Warwickshire, England.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : It is situated between Coventry, 6 miles (9.5 km) to the south, a ...
,
Atherstone
Atherstone is a market town and civil parish in the North Warwickshire district of Warwickshire, England. Located in the far north of the county, Atherstone is on the A5 national route, and is adjacent to the border with Leicestershire which ...
and
Hinckley
Hinckley is a market town in south-west Leicestershire, England. It is administered by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council. Hinckley is the third largest settlement in the administrative county of Leicestershire, after Leicester and Loughbor ...
Rugby
Rugby may refer to:
Sport
* Rugby football in many forms:
** Rugby league: 13 players per side
*** Masters Rugby League
*** Mod league
*** Rugby league nines
*** Rugby league sevens
*** Touch (sport)
*** Wheelchair rugby league
** Rugby union: 1 ...
Lutterworth
Lutterworth is a market town and civil parish in the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England. The town is located in southern Leicestershire, close to the borders with Warwickshire and Northamptonshire. It is located north of Rugby, ...
a little further afield.
Districts and suburbs of Nuneaton
Within the borough boundaries:
* Abbey Green
* Arbury
* Attleborough (including Maple Park)
*
Bermuda
)
, anthem = "God Save the King"
, song_type = National song
, song = " Hail to Bermuda"
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, mapsize2 =
, map_caption2 =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name =
, e ...
* Caldwell
* Camp Hill
* Chapel End (including The Shires)
*
Chilvers Coton
Chilvers Coton is an area of the town of Nuneaton in Warwickshire, England, around one mile south of the town centre.
Chilvers Coton was historically a village and civil parish in its own right and was mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as ...
*
Galley Common
Galley Common is a suburb of Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England. The community is a ward on the western fringe of Nuneaton and Bedworth district, on the border with North Warwickshire district, with a population taken at the 2011 census of 8,233. ...
*
Griff
Griff may refer to:
People
* Griff (name), a list of people with the given name or surname
* Griff (singer), stage name of English singer and songwriter Sarah Faith Griffiths (born 2001)
* Nickname of Guy Griffiths (1915–1999), British Second W ...
* Grove Farm
* Heath End
* Hill Top
* Horeston Grange
* Robinson's End
*
St Nicolas Park
St Nicolas Park is a suburban area of Nuneaton in Warwickshire, central England. It is a large housing estate, built between the 1960s and the 1990s. It is situated on the north-eastern edge of Nuneaton, close to the A5 (Watling Street) and appr ...
*
Stockingford
Stockingford is a suburb of the town of Nuneaton, in the county of Warwickshire, England, about west of the town centre.
Stockingford first appeared in records in 1157, named ''Stoccingford'', derived from the Old English ''Stocc''; to root up t ...
(including Glendale, Sunnyside, Black-a-Tree, Church Farm)
* Weddington
* Whitestone (including Crowhill)
* Whittleford (including Poplar Farm, Hawthorn Common)
Adjacent or adjoining places, some of which fall outside the borough boundaries:
* Ansley
*
Bulkington
Bulkington is a large village and former civil parish, now in the unparished area of Bedworth, in the Nuneaton and Bedworth district of Warwickshire, England.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : In the 2011 census the wa ...
Hartshill
Hartshill is a large village and civil parish in North Warwickshire, England, 2.5 miles (4 km) north-west of the town of Nuneaton. The parish borders the district of Nuneaton and Bedworth at the south, the North Warwickshire district parishes ...
Politics
National
Nuneaton is part of the constituency of the same name in the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...
. The constituency is currently represented by the
Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
1935
Events
January
* January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude Franco-Italian Agreement of 1935, an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims.
* ...
to
1983
The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call.
Events January
* January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to Internet protocol suite, TCP/IP is officially completed (this is consid ...
, Nuneaton was a safe
Labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
seat, but it has become more marginal. Between 1983 and
1992
File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...
, the Conservatives held the seat, until losing it back to Labour. For the next 18 years, the Labour Party (in the form of
Bill Olner
William John Olner (9 May 1942 – 18 May 2020) was a British Labour Co-operative politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Nuneaton from 1992 until 2010. Previously, he led Nuneaton Borough Council (which later merged with Be ...
) was the local representative at Parliament, until his retirement.
Local
There are two-tiers of local government covering Nuneaton;
Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council
Nuneaton ( ) is a market town in the borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth in northern Warwickshire, England, close to the county border with Leicestershire and West Midlands County.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : Nuneaton's ...
as the lower tier and
Warwickshire County Council
Warwickshire County Council is the county council that governs the non-metropolitan county of Warwickshire in England.
Its headquarters are located at Shire Hall, Market Square, in centre of the county town of Warwick. Politically the county is ...
as the upper tier. Nuneaton is an
unparished area
In England, an unparished area is an area that is not covered by a civil parish (the lowest level of local government, not to be confused with an ecclesiastical parish). Most urbanised districts of England are either entirely or partly unparish ...
and so there is no tier of administration below the Borough council. Nuneaton and Bedworth council was once solidly controlled by the Labour Party, but has in more recent years become more changeable: It was Labour controlled from its creation in 1974, until the 2008 local elections, when the Conservatives gained control, ending 34 years of Labour rule. (''Further reading:'' 2008 Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council election) However, the period of Conservative control was relatively short lived. The Labour Party won two seats from the Conservative Party in the 2010 local elections, giving no party overall control of the council (but leaving the Labour Party as the largest grouping). In 2012 Labour gained a further 8 seats to regain overall control which they lost again to no overall control in 2018. In the May 2021 elections, the Conservatives once more gained a majority; winning ten seats from Labour and one from an independent.
Economy
Nuneaton's traditional industries like textiles, mining and manufacturing have declined significantly in the post-war years. Due to its transport links, Nuneaton is to some extent a
commuter town
A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...
for nearby Coventry and Birmingham. However a relatively large number of businesses involved in the automotive, aerospace and engineering supply chains industries are active in the area. MIRA Limited, formerly the Motor Industry Research Association, is based on a disused wartime airfield on the A5, to the north of the town.
One of the biggest developments in the town's history, the multimillion-pound
Ropewalk Shopping Centre
The Ropewalk Shopping Centre is a shopping centre in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England. It has a glass roof (which is not connected to the building), two floors retail stores, including high street retailers, and also a car park.
History and i ...
, opened in September 2005 in the hope that it will give the town extra income from the shopping, attract more visitors and retailers, and attract shoppers as an alternative to larger retail centres such as Birmingham, Coventry, Leicester and Solihull. An older shopping centre, the
Abbeygate Shopping Centre
The Abbeygate Shopping Centre (sometimes mistakenly referred to as 'Abbey Gate Shopping Precinct') is a shopping centre in the town centre of Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England. It was first opened in the 1960s and was originally known as ''Heron Wa ...
in the town centre was first opened in the 1960s, and was formerly known as Heron Way.
The European headquarters of
Holland & Barrett
Holland & Barrett (H&B) is a multinational chain of health food shops with over 1,300 stores in 16 countries, including a substantial presence in the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Netherlands, Belgium, Mainland China, Hong Kong, India, ...
are based in the town, as is the UK head office of
FedEx
FedEx Corporation, formerly Federal Express Corporation and later FDX Corporation, is an American multinational conglomerate holding company focused on transportation, e-commerce and business services based in Memphis, Tennessee. The name "Fe ...
. While Bermuda Park, which is south of Nuneaton, is the location of the national distribution centres of
Dairy Crest
Saputo Dairy UK Limited is a holding company for Dairy Crest Limited, a British dairy products company. It was created in 2019 when the Canadian company Saputo Inc bought Dairy Crest. Dairy Crest itself was created in 1981 as a spin-off of the Mi ...
and
RS Components
RS Group plc (formerly Electrocomponents plc) is a distributor of industrial and electronics products based in London, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.
History
The company was foun ...
. Nuneaton is also the location of several international online marketing companies.
In 2017 the Nuneaton and Bedworth borough was less prosperous than the rest of Warwickshire, reflecting the long established north–south divide in the county. The average annual workplace wage in Nuneaton and Bedworth was £21,981, the lowest in the county and below the Warwickshire average of £28,513 (and UK £28,296) although the productivity gap had narrowed with the rest of Warwickshire since 2009.
Religion
Nuneaton's name reflects the effect that
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
has had upon the town's history. Although the
Benedictine
, image = Medalla San Benito.PNG
, caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal
, abbreviation = OSB
, formation =
, motto = (English: 'Pray and Work')
, foun ...
nunnery which gave the town its name was destroyed at the time of the
Reformation
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
, the remaining fragments were incorporated into the
Anglican
Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
Near the town centre, but unusually not a part of it and outside the ring road, lies the medieval church of St. Nicolas – a grade I listed building. Chilvers Coton contains All Saints' Church, where Mary Ann Evans (
George Eliot
Mary Ann Evans (22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880; alternatively Mary Anne or Marian), known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wro ...
) worshipped and
Justin Welby
Justin Portal Welby (born 6 January 1956) is a British bishop who is the 105th Archbishop of Canterbury. He has served in that role since 2013. Welby was previously the vicar of Southam, Warwickshire, and then Bishop of Durham, serving for jus ...
, now
Archbishop of Canterbury
The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...
, served as a
curate
A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...
. This was badly damaged by bombing during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, and rebuilt largely by German
prisoners of war
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610.
Belligerents hold priso ...
. There are also Anglican churches in Weddington (St James's), Attleborough (Holy Trinity), Stockingford ( St Paul's), Galley Common (St Peter's), Abbey Green (St Mary's), and more recently built (1954), in Camp Hill St Mary's and St John's.
Roman Catholic Church
There are two parishes in the town serving the
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
community in Nuneaton. Our Lady of the Angels on Coton Road, was opened in 1838 (originally as St Mary's). The building, designed by
Joseph Hansom
Joseph Aloysius Hansom (26 October 1803 – 29 June 1882) was a British architect working principally in the Gothic Revival style. He invented the Hansom cab and founded the eminent architectural journal, '' The Builder'', in 1843.
Career ...
, was extensively remodeled in 1936. The Parish of
St Anne's, Chapel End, Nuneaton
The Roman Catholic parish of St Anne, Nuneaton, in Warwickshire, England, serves the western side of Nuneaton and outlying villages towards Coleshill. The parish is part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham and a part of the Rugby De ...
was created in 1949 out of the Parish of Our Lady of the Angels (which originally covered the whole town). The original church building was replaced with the existing church, which was opened in 2000.
Other Christian traditions
In the town,
Baptist
Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...
,
Methodist
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...
,
Wesleyan Reform Union
The Wesleyan Reform Union is an independent Methodist Connexion founded in 1859 and based in the United Kingdom. The Union comprises around one hundred individual self-governing churches in England and Scotland. Beliefs are set out in a nine po ...
,
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...
,
Pentecostal
Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement
,
the Salvation Army
The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestant church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. The organisation reports a worldwide membership of over 1.7million, comprising soldiers, officers and adherents col ...
,
United Reformed
The United Reformed Church (URC) is a Protestant Christian church in the United Kingdom. As of 2022 it has approximately 40,000 members in 1,284 congregations with 334 stipendiary ministers.
Origins and history
The United Reformed Church resulte ...
and
Christadelphian
The Christadelphians () or Christadelphianism are a restorationist and millenarian Christian group who hold a view of biblical unitarianism. There are approximately 50,000 Christadelphians in around 120 countries. The movement developed in the ...
churches serve their respective congregations.
A Kingdom Hall of
Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ...
is located in the Stockingford area and Christadelphians in Whitestone.
Other world religions
In addition to Christianity, there are also followers of
Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
,
Sikhism
Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...
and
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
. There is a
mosque
A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...
on Frank Street, Chilvers Coton and two
gurdwara
A gurdwara (sometimes written as gurudwara) (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰਦੁਆਰਾ ''guradu'ārā'', meaning "Door to the Guru") is a place of assembly and worship for Sikhs. Sikhs also refer to gurdwaras as ''Gurdwara Sahib''. People from all faiths ...
s (Sikh temples): the Nuneaton Guru Nanak Gurdwara in Park Avenue, Attleborough, and the Shri Guru Tegh Bahadur Gurdwara in Marlborough Road, Chilvers Coton.
A number of Jewish families have settled in and around Nuneaton over the past two centuries as local industries have grown and ebbed. Historically, families would travel for important life events and holidays to worship at the mediaeval Spon Street
Synagogue
A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...
in Coventry, at the short lived Hinckley Synagogue in the early 20th century and most recently, in the modern Coventry Reform Synagogue.
The Bahá'i Faith has been represented in Nuneaton and Bedworth since 1980 and the first Local Spiritual Assembly was formed in April 1982. The growing Bahá'i community has been supportive of educational and social issues, has encouraged multi faith events and organised 'Live Unity' concerts in Riversley Park and the BBC award-winning 'Walk of Faith', which visited the main religious venues listed above to promote a sense of the unity of religions.
Demographics
At the 2011 census there were 86,552 residents in Nuneaton in 37,317 households. The median age of Nuneaton residents was 39.
In terms of ethnicity:
*91.6% of Nuneaton residents were
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
(Comprising 89.3%
White British
White British is an ethnicity classification used for the native white population identifying as English, Scottish, Welsh, Cornish, Northern Irish, or British in the United Kingdom Census. In the 2011 census, the White British population wa ...
, 1.8%
Other White
The term Other White is a classification of ethnicity in the United Kingdom and has been used in documents such as the 2011 UK Census to describe people who self-identify as white (chiefly European) persons who are not of the English, Welsh, S ...
, 0.5%
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
and 0.1%
Gypsy
The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...
/
Irish Traveller
Irish Travellers ( ga, an lucht siúil, meaning "the walking people"), also known as Pavees or Mincéirs (Shelta: Mincéirí), are a traditionally peripatetic indigenous ethno-cultural group in Ireland.''Questioning Gypsy identity: ethnic na ...
).
*6.2% were
Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
(Comprising 4.4%
Indian
Indian or Indians may refer to:
Peoples South Asia
* Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor
** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country
* South Asia ...
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
and 1.1% from another Asian background)
*0.8% were
Black
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...
(Comprising 0.4%
African
African or Africans may refer to:
* Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa:
** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa
*** Ethn ...
, 0.3%
Caribbean
The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
and 0.1% other Black)
*1.1% were Mixed.
*0.1% were
Arab
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
and 0.2% were from another ethnic group.
In terms of religion, 63.5% of Nuneaton residents identified as
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
, 24.3% said they had no religion, 6.0% did not state any religion, 3.1% were
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
, 1.2% were
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
, 1.2% were
Sikh
Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...
, 0.4% were
Buddhists
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...
, and 0.4% were from another religion.
Transport
Road
The town is near the M6, the M42 and M69 motorways and the main A5 trunk road (
Watling Street
Watling Street is a historic route in England that crosses the River Thames at London and which was used in Classical Antiquity, Late Antiquity, and throughout the Middle Ages. It was used by the ancient Britons and paved as one of the main R ...
), which also acts as a border with Leicestershire and the neighbouring town of Hinckley. The A444 provides a high-speed
dual-carriageway
A dual carriageway ( BE) or divided highway ( AE) is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation (BrE) or median (AmE). Roads with two or more carriageways which are ...
route into the town from the south and also acts as the often busy town centre
ring road
A ring road (also known as circular road, beltline, beltway, circumferential (high)way, loop, bypass or orbital) is a road or a series of connected roads encircling a town, city, or country. The most common purpose of a ring road is to assist i ...
. The A47 links the town with neighbouring Hinckley and onwards to Leicester, and the A4254 – Eastern Relief Road – provides direct access from the east of Nuneaton to the south, avoiding the town centre.
Railway
The town has two railway stations. The main
Nuneaton railway station
Nuneaton railway station serves the large town of Nuneaton in Warwickshire, England. The station is managed by West Midlands Trains. It is served by three railway lines: the Trent Valley section of the West Coast Main Line (WCML), the Birmingh ...
, located near the town centre, is an important railway junction and is served by the
West Coast Main Line
The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest ...
Kenilworth
Kenilworth ( ) is a market town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Warwick (district), Warwick District in Warwickshire, England, south-west of Coventry, north of Warwick and north-west of London. It lies on Finham Brook, a ...
and Leamington) rail upgrade scheme.
Historically, Nuneaton was also served by Chilvers Coton station, Abbey Street station and Stockingford station. Chilvers Coton station was located on the Coventry line, a short distance north of the new Bermuda Park station, and was closed in 1965. Abbey Street station and Stockingford station were on the line towards Birmingham and were both closed in 1968. In January 2017, there were proposals to open a new station at Stockingford, at a different location from the former one, which could open by 2023. Warwickshire County Council have also proposed a new ''Nuneaton Parkway'' station between Nuneaton and
Hinckley
Hinckley is a market town in south-west Leicestershire, England. It is administered by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council. Hinckley is the third largest settlement in the administrative county of Leicestershire, after Leicester and Loughbor ...
, which could open by 2034.
Bus
The principal operator around Nuneaton is Stagecoach in Warwickshire and the depot is located next to the fire station on Newtown Road, just west from the bus station.
Arriva Midlands
Arriva Midlands is a bus operator providing services in the East Midlands and West Midlands areas of England. It is a subsidiary of Arriva UK Bus.
Arriva Midlands North Operations
In September 1981 Midland Red North was formed with 230 bus ...
also operate a number of routes around Nuneaton with buses running to Tamworth,
Hinckley
Hinckley is a market town in south-west Leicestershire, England. It is administered by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council. Hinckley is the third largest settlement in the administrative county of Leicestershire, after Leicester and Loughbor ...
,
Barwell
Barwell is a civil parish and large village in Leicestershire, England, with a population of 8,750 residents, Increasing to 9,022 at the 2011 census, the name literally translates as "Stream of the Boar" and is said to originate from a boar that ...
,
Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city l ...
.
MIRA
Mira (), designation Omicron Ceti (ο Ceti, abbreviated Omicron Cet, ο Cet), is a red-giant star estimated to be 200–400 light-years from the Sun in the constellation Cetus.
ο Ceti is a binary stellar system, consisting of a varia ...
, and
Coventry
Coventry ( or ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its ...
. Arriva Midlands also operate service 78 to Walsgrave Hospital, a service operated by
Travel de Courcey
Travel de Courcey was a bus and coach operator based near Coventry in the West Midlands region of England. It operated local bus services in the Coventry and Warwickshire area and National Express contracts.
History
Mike de Courcey Travel was ...
until the company entered administration in 2020.
In January 2020 NX Coventry announced an extension to Nuneaton on their 20 route from Coventry to Bedworth.
Canal
The
Coventry Canal
The Coventry Canal is a navigable narrow canal in the Midlands of England.
It starts in Coventry and ends to the north at Fradley Junction, just north of Lichfield, where it joins the Trent and Mersey Canal. It also has connections with the ...
passes through Nuneaton, while the
Ashby Canal
The Ashby-de-la-Zouch Canal is a long canal in England which connected the mining district around Moira, just outside the town of Ashby-de-la-Zouch in Leicestershire, with the Coventry Canal at Bedworth in Warwickshire. It was opened in 1804, ...
skirts the town's south-eastern outskirts.
Recreation and culture
Nuneaton has two non-league
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
teams:
Nuneaton Borough
Nuneaton Borough Football Club is an English football club that is based in Nuneaton, Warwickshire. The men's 1st team competes in the , the seventh tier of English football.
In 1889, Nuneaton St. Nicholas FC was the first team in Nuneaton t ...
who play in the
National League North
The National League North, formerly Conference North, is a division of the National League in England, immediately below the National League division. Along with the National League South, it is at the second level of the National League Sy ...
and
Nuneaton Griff
Nuneaton Griff F.C. are a football club based in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England. They joined the Midland Football Combination Premier Division in 1999, and have been competing in the since it was formed in 2014.
Griff have won the Midland C ...
who play in the
Midland Football League
The Midland Football League is an English football league that was founded in 2014 by the merger of the former Midland Alliance and Midland Combination. The league has four divisions that sit at levels 9–12 of the football pyramid.
History
Th ...
Division One. Sunday League football is played in the town, with teams from Nuneaton, Bedworth and North Warwickshire competing in the Nuneaton & District Sunday Football League (NDSFL).
There are three
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
clubs:
Nuneaton R.F.C.
Nuneaton RFC is an English rugby union club. They were founded in 1879 and play at Liberty Way in Nuneaton. They currently play in the Midlands Premier, a fifth tier league in the English rugby union system.
History
Nuneaton R.F.C. was founde ...
(nicknamed ''"the Nuns"''), who play in National 3 Midlands, Nuneaton Old Edwardians of
Midlands 2 West (South)
Midlands 2 West (South) is a level seven English rugby union league and level two of the Midlands League, made up of teams from the southern part of the West Midlands region including Herefordshire, parts of Birmingham and the West Midlands, ...
division and Manor Park of the
Midlands 3 West (South)
Midlands 3 West (South) is a level 8 English Rugby Union league and level 3 of the Midlands League, made up of teams from the southern part of the West Midlands region including clubs from parts of Birmingham and the West Midlands, Herefords ...
league.
The town is also the location of Nuneaton Bowling club, where flat green bowls is played.
There are three main
leisure centre
A leisure centre in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia (also called aquatic centres), Singapore and Canada is a purpose-built building or site, usually owned and operated by the city, borough council or municipal district council, where people ...
s in the town owned by Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council and managed by
Everyone Active
Everyone may refer to:
Television
* "Everyone" (Skins series 1), episode 9 of series 1 of ''Skins''
* "Everyone", episode 1 of series 3 of ''Skins''
* "Everyone", episode 8 of series 4 of ''Skins''
* "Everyone" (Skins series 5), episode 8 of ...
on the council's behalf (after a competitive tender process):
*Pingles Leisure Centre – The Pingles is the main leisure centre in Nuneaton. It was rebuilt in 2004 to replace the original Pingles that was built in 1965. The new Pingles includes an indoor and outdoor
swimming
Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...
areas, a dance studio and
gym
A gymnasium, also known as a gym, is an indoor location for athletics. The word is derived from the ancient Greek term " gymnasium". They are commonly found in athletic and fitness centres, and as activity and learning spaces in educational ins ...
.
*The Pingles Stadium – The Pingles Stadium was built in 1998. It has a 4,000 capacity with a 250-seater stand, athletics track, and football pitch. The stadium is home to Nuneaton Harriers Athletic Club, Nuneaton Griff Football Club and Nuneaton Triathlon Club.
*Jubilee Sports Centre – The Jubilee Sports Centre is a sports hall. The hall is used for various sports including
badminton
Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players pe ...
,
five-a-side football
Five-a-side football is a version of minifootball, in which each team fields five players (four outfield players and a goalkeeper). Other differences from football include a smaller pitch, smaller goals, and a reduced game duration. Matches are ...
/indoor football and
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
. The Jubilee also has a scoreboard, used for major basketball and indoor football matches. The hall can be hired out for uses such as
karate
(; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the ...
lessons.
*Etone Sports Centre – Etone Sports Centre is another sports hall. Etone sports hall also has
astroturf
AstroTurf is an American subsidiary of SportGroup that produces artificial turf for playing surfaces in sports. The original AstroTurf product was a short-pile synthetic turf invented in 1965 by Monsanto. Since the early 2000s, AstroTurf has m ...
football pitches which are used also for
hockey
Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...
. The centre is in the grounds of the school which bears the same name, Etone School, but 'Everyone Active' maintains the building.
Nuneaton has a museum and art gallery in the grounds of
Riversley Park
Riversley Park is an urban park in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England, which covers an area of and is located immediately to the south of the town centre, with the River Anker flowing through it.
History
The park was opened on 6 July 1907 on land ...
adjacent to the town centre. The museum includes a display on
George Eliot
Mary Ann Evans (22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880; alternatively Mary Anne or Marian), known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wro ...
. Eliot's family home Griff House is now a restaurant and hotel on the A444.
The
Abbey Theatre
The Abbey Theatre ( ga, Amharclann na Mainistreach), also known as the National Theatre of Ireland ( ga, Amharclann Náisiúnta na hÉireann), in Dublin, Ireland, is one of the country's leading cultural institutions. First opening to the pu ...
is Nuneaton's only theatre and hosts a wide variety of performances including visiting opera and ballet companies, touring shows, musicals, pantomime and drama. Run solely by volunteers, the Abbey Theatre seats 250 plus space for wheelchair patrons.
Nuneaton annually enters the
Britain in Bloom
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
competition and in 2000, Nuneaton and Bedworth was a national finalist. It is the location of Nuneaton Carnival, the largest carnival in Warwickshire, which takes place every June.
Nuneaton was home to the smallest independent newspaper in Britain (the ''Heartland Evening News'') until it was purchased in 2006 by life News & Media.
Public art in Nuneaton includes a statue of George Eliot on Newdegate Square, and the Gold Belt.
George Eliot's inspirations
Many locations in
George Eliot
Mary Ann Evans (22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880; alternatively Mary Anne or Marian), known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wro ...
's works were based on places in or near her native Nuneaton, including:
*Milby (town and parish church, based on Nuneaton and St Nicolas parish church);
*Shepperton (based on
Chilvers Coton
Chilvers Coton is an area of the town of Nuneaton in Warwickshire, England, around one mile south of the town centre.
Chilvers Coton was historically a village and civil parish in its own right and was mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as ...
);
*Paddiford Common (based on Stockingford, which at the time had a large area of common land including its parish Church of St Paul's);
*Knebley (based on Astley; Knebley Church is Astley Church, while Knebley Abbey is Astley Castle);
*Red Deeps (based on Griff Hollows);
*Cheverel Manor (based on
Arbury Hall
Arbury Hall () is a Grade I listed country house in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England, and the ancestral home of the Newdigate family, later the Newdigate-Newdegate and Fitzroy-Newdegate families.
History
The hall is built on the site of the ...
);
*Dorlcote Mill (based on Griff House);
*The Red Lion (based on the Bull Hotel, now the George Eliot Hotel in Bridge Street, Nuneaton);
*Middlemarch (based on Coventry);
*Treby Magna (also thought to be based on Coventry);
*Little Treby (thought to be based on Stoneleigh);
*Transome Court (thought to be based on Stoneleigh Abbey).
Landmarks
A major local landmark in Nuneaton, which can be seen for many miles is Mount Judd which is a conical shaped former
spoil heap
A spoil tip (also called a boney pile, culm bank, gob pile, waste tip or bing) is a pile built of accumulated ''spoil'' – waste material removed during mining. These waste materials are typically composed of shale, as well as smaller quan ...
, high made from spoil from the former Judkins Quarry. It is also known locally as the ''Nuneaton Nipple''. In May 2018 it was voted the best UK landmark in an online poll for the ''
Daily Mirror
The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply ''The Mirror''. It had an average daily print ...
'' newspaper, beating competition from the likes of the
Angel of the North
The ''Angel of the North'' is a contemporary sculpture by Antony Gormley, located in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England. Completed in 1998, it is believed to be the largest sculpture of an angel in the world and is viewed by an estimated 33 m ...
and
Big Ben
Big Ben is the nickname for the Great Bell of the Great Clock of Westminster, at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, England, and the name is frequently extended to refer also to the clock and the clock tower. The officia ...
.
Another well known landmark is the Roanne Fountain, also known as the Dandelion Fountain, which sits in the middle of a
roundabout
A roundabout is a type of circular intersection or junction in which road traffic is permitted to flow in one direction around a central island, and priority is typically given to traffic already in the junction.''The New Shorter Oxford En ...
in the town centre, it was built in 2000, and features 385 spraying arms which spray out 50,000 gallons of water per hour. In 2016 it was voted the 'UK Roundabout of the Year' by the
Roundabout Appreciation Society
The Roundabout Appreciation Society (UKRAS) is a group of people in the United Kingdom that discuss traffic roundabouts. The main topic of discussion is the architecture of the roundabouts, including their design and safety features. Other topics ...
, who stated that the town should feel "very proud for achieving such a high roundabout accolade."
Education
Primary
*Abbey CE Infant School, Abbey Green
*All Saints' CE Primary School, Hill Top
*Camp Hill Primary School, Camp Hill
*Chetwynd Junior School, Whitestone
*Chilvers Coton Community Infant School,
Chilvers Coton
Chilvers Coton is an area of the town of Nuneaton in Warwickshire, England, around one mile south of the town centre.
Chilvers Coton was historically a village and civil parish in its own right and was mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as ...
*Croft Junior School,
Stockingford
Stockingford is a suburb of the town of Nuneaton, in the county of Warwickshire, England, about west of the town centre.
Stockingford first appeared in records in 1157, named ''Stoccingford'', derived from the Old English ''Stocc''; to root up t ...
*Galley Common Infant School,
Galley Common
Galley Common is a suburb of Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England. The community is a ward on the western fringe of Nuneaton and Bedworth district, on the border with North Warwickshire district, with a population taken at the 2011 census of 8,233. ...
Hartshill
Hartshill is a large village and civil parish in North Warwickshire, England, 2.5 miles (4 km) north-west of the town of Nuneaton. The parish borders the district of Nuneaton and Bedworth at the south, the North Warwickshire district parishes ...
*Middlemarch Junior School, Hill Top
*Milby Primary School,
St Nicolas Park
St Nicolas Park is a suburban area of Nuneaton in Warwickshire, central England. It is a large housing estate, built between the 1960s and the 1990s. It is situated on the north-eastern edge of Nuneaton, close to the A5 (Watling Street) and appr ...
*Milverton House School, Attleborough
*Nathaniel Newton Infant School,
Hartshill
Hartshill is a large village and civil parish in North Warwickshire, England, 2.5 miles (4 km) north-west of the town of Nuneaton. The parish borders the district of Nuneaton and Bedworth at the south, the North Warwickshire district parishes ...
*Nursery Hill Primary School,
Ansley Common
Ansley is a village and civil parish in the North Warwickshire district of Warwickshire, England.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : The parish includes the village of Ansley, Ansley Common, Church End, Ansley Hall, Birchley H ...
*Oak Wood Primary School (special school), Hill Top
*Our Lady & St Joseph Catholic Academy, Attleborough
*Park Lane Primary School, Grove Farm
*Queen's CE Junior School,
Chilvers Coton
Chilvers Coton is an area of the town of Nuneaton in Warwickshire, England, around one mile south of the town centre.
Chilvers Coton was historically a village and civil parish in its own right and was mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as ...
*St Anne's Catholic Primary School, Camp Hill
*St Nicolas' CE Primary School,
St Nicolas Park
St Nicolas Park is a suburban area of Nuneaton in Warwickshire, central England. It is a large housing estate, built between the 1960s and the 1990s. It is situated on the north-eastern edge of Nuneaton, close to the A5 (Watling Street) and appr ...
*St Paul's CE Primary School,
Stockingford
Stockingford is a suburb of the town of Nuneaton, in the county of Warwickshire, England, about west of the town centre.
Stockingford first appeared in records in 1157, named ''Stoccingford'', derived from the Old English ''Stocc''; to root up t ...
*Stockingford Primary Academy,
Stockingford
Stockingford is a suburb of the town of Nuneaton, in the county of Warwickshire, England, about west of the town centre.
Stockingford first appeared in records in 1157, named ''Stoccingford'', derived from the Old English ''Stocc''; to root up t ...
Etone College
Etone College (formerly Etone Community School and Technology College) is a secondary academy school in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England. It was founded in 1910 as the Nuneaton High School for Girls. It is a mixed school of non-denominational ...
Hartshill Academy
Hartshill Academy (formerly Hartshill School) is a Mixed-sex education, mixed secondary school located in Hartshill area of Nuneaton in the English county of Warwickshire.
Feeder schools include Nathaniel Newton Infant School and Michael Drayto ...
Hartshill
Hartshill is a large village and civil parish in North Warwickshire, England, 2.5 miles (4 km) north-west of the town of Nuneaton. The parish borders the district of Nuneaton and Bedworth at the south, the North Warwickshire district parishes ...
*
Higham Lane School
Higham Lane School is a Secondary school, secondary Academy (English school), academy school in Weddington, Nuneaton, Weddington, Nuneaton, England. Appointed in 2006, the school's headteacher is Nick Haddon. The school teaches students aged b ...
Nuneaton Academy
Nuneaton Academy (formerly Alderman Smith School) is a coeducational secondary school with academy status located in Nuneaton, Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The cou ...
, resulting from the merger of Alderman Smith School and Manor Park School),
Stockingford
Stockingford is a suburb of the town of Nuneaton, in the county of Warwickshire, England, about west of the town centre.
Stockingford first appeared in records in 1157, named ''Stoccingford'', derived from the Old English ''Stocc''; to root up t ...
North Warwickshire and Hinckley College
North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire College - North Warwickshire and Hinckley Campus, previously North Warwickshire and Hinckley College, is a Further Education College with main campuses in Nuneaton, Hinckley, Harrowbrook and Wigston. T ...
,
St Nicolas Park
St Nicolas Park is a suburban area of Nuneaton in Warwickshire, central England. It is a large housing estate, built between the 1960s and the 1990s. It is situated on the north-eastern edge of Nuneaton, close to the A5 (Watling Street) and appr ...
George Eliot
Mary Ann Evans (22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880; alternatively Mary Anne or Marian), known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wro ...
(1819–1880), Victorian novelist
*
A. J. Quinnell
Philip Nicholson (25 June 1940–10 July 2005), known by his pen name A. J. Quinnell, was an English thriller novelist.John Barber (1734–1793), inventor of the gas turbine in 1791
* John Birch (1867–1945), motorcycle manufacturer and designer
* Richard K. Guy (1916–2020), British mathematician and author
* Henry Beighton ( 1687–1743). Engineer, cartographer and engraver.
Media and the arts
* Paul Bradley, (born 1955) actor (born in Nuneaton)
*
Ben Daniels
Ben Daniels (born 10 June 1964) is a British actor. Initially a stage actor, Daniels was nominated for an Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actor for ''Never the Sinner'' (1991), the Evening Standard Award for Best Actor for ''900 Oneonta'' ( ...
, (born 1964) actor (born in Nuneaton)
*
Gareth Edwards
Sir Gareth Owen Edwards CBE (born 12 July 1947) is a Welsh former rugby union player who played scrum-half and has been described by the BBC as "arguably the greatest player ever to don a Welsh jersey".
In 2003, in a poll of international ru ...
, (born 1975) film director, ''
Monsters
A monster is a type of fictional creature found in horror, fantasy, science fiction, folklore, mythology and religion. Monsters are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive with a strange, grotesque appearance that causes terror and fe ...
'', ''
Godzilla
is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film ''Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produc ...
'' and the 2016 ''
Star Wars
''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...
'' standalone film, ''
Rogue One
''Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'' (or simply ''Rogue One'') is a 2016 American epic space opera film directed by Gareth Edwards. The screenplay by Chris Weitz and Tony Gilroy is from a story by John Knoll and Gary Whitta. It was produced by Luc ...
''.
*
Chris Emmett
Christopher Roderick Emmett (born 13 December 1938 in Nuneaton, Warwickshire) is a British actor and comedian best known for his work in the late 1970s on the BBC Radio 4 comedies ''The Burkiss Way'' and '' Alison and Maud''. He was a regular o ...
, (born 1938) comedian, notably appearing on '' 3-2-1''
* Eyeless In Gaza, post-punk duo, formed 1980
*
Fresh Maggots
Fresh Maggots are a folk duo from Nuneaton, Warwickshire in England, consisting of Mick Burgoyne and Leigh Dolphin, who played a variety of instruments including guitars, glockenspiel, tin whistles and strings.''The Wire'', 2007, volumes 281-286 ...
, early 1970s folk/psychedelic rock group
*
Larry Grayson
Larry is a masculine given name in English, derived from Lawrence or Laurence. It can be a shortened form of those names.
Larry may refer to the following:
People Arts and entertainment
*Larry D. Alexander, American artist/writer
* Larry Boon ...
, (1923–1995) comedian, entertainer and television presenter, long-term resident of Nuneaton.
*
Alan
Alan may refer to:
People
*Alan (surname), an English and Turkish surname
* Alan (given name), an English given name
**List of people with given name Alan
''Following are people commonly referred to solely by "Alan" or by a homonymous name.''
*A ...
and Graham "Kidder" Hammonds, musicians,
Incredible Kidda Band
The Incredible Kidda Band (aka The Kidda Band) were a British power pop band formed in Nuneaton on 10 February 1976, and composed of Alan Hammonds (guitars, vocals), Graham "Kidder" Hammonds (percussion, backing vocals), Dave 'Legs' Lister, (le ...
(grew up in Nuneaton and went to Alderman Smith and Manor Park Grammar School respectively)
*
Jon Holmes
Jon Holmes (born 24 April 1973) is a British comedian, writer, presenter and broadcaster known for his work on such programmes as ''The Now Show'', '' Listen Against'' (for BBC Radio 4), along with both music and spoken word radio. He has ap ...
, (born 1969) writer, comedian and broadcaster (grew up in Nuneaton)
*
Conrad Keely
Conrad Keely (born 15 May 1972) is a musician, artist, and writer known primarily as the lead singer for the American rock band ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead.
Background
Born in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England of Irish and Tha ...
, (born 1972) musician, born in Nuneaton
*
Ken Loach
Kenneth Charles Loach (born 17 June 1936) is a British film director and screenwriter. His socially critical directing style and socialist ideals are evident in his film treatment of social issues such as poverty (''Poor Cow'', 1967), homelessne ...
, (born 1936) film and television director
*
Kate Quilton
Katie Marie Quilton (born 30 November 1983 in Nuneaton, Warwickshire) is an English television presenter and journalist. She is best known for presenting a number of Channel 4 television series, including '' Food Unwrapped'' since 2012.
Career ...
(born 1983) TV presenter (Food Unwrapped – Channel 4)
*
Justin Welch
Justin Steven Welch (born 4 December 1972) is an English musician, best known as the drummer in Elastica, Suede, and later the drummer in Lush.
Biography
Welch moved to London in his late teens and studied at London's Drumtech drum school. H ...
, (born 1972) drummer with Britpop band
Elastica
Elastica were an English rock band formed in London in 1992 by ex- Suede members Justine Frischmann and Justin Welch. The band was stylistically influenced by punk rock, post-punk and new wave music. The band's members changed several times ...
(1991–2001) and a drummer for
Suede
Suede (pronounced ) is a type of leather with a fuzzy, napped finish, commonly used for jackets, shoes, fabrics, purses, furniture, and other items. The term comes from the French , which literally means "gloves from Sweden". The term was fir ...
in their formative years
*
Mary Whitehouse
Constance Mary Whitehouse (; 13 June 1910 – 23 November 2001) was a British teacher and conservative activist. She campaigned against social liberalism and the mainstream British media, both of which she accused of encouraging a more permiss ...
, (1910–2001) TV campaigner (born in Nuneaton)
Sports
*
Ben Ackland
Benjamin James Ackland (born 26 October 1989) is an English-born Irish cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman who bowls right-arm off break. He was born in Nuneaton in Warwickshire, and educated at Queen's College, Taunton.
Ackland made his de ...
, Irish cricketer (born in Nuneaton)
* Julian Alsop, footballer
*
Stuart Attwell
Stuart Steven Attwell (born 6 October 1982) is an English football referee who officiates primarily in the Premier League.
Attwell made a prominent debut in 2008 as the youngest person ever to referee in the Premier League. but was demoted from ...
, Premier League referee
*
Laura Bassett
Laura Bassett (born 2 August 1983) is an English former football defender who represented England internationally. She played for FA WSL club Notts County, Birmingham City (two separate spells), Arsenal, Leeds Carnegie, Chelsea, and Australian ...
, Member of the 2015 WWC Bronze medal-winning England Women's National Football team
* Paul Best, retired cricketer
* John Curtis, footballer
*
Matty Fryatt Matty may refer to:
* Matty (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the nickname, given name or surname
* Matty, Hungary, a village in Baranya County
* Matty Island, a Canadian arctic island
* Former name of Wuvulu Island
* Matty ...
, footballer
* Andy Goode, Wasps RFC & England International Rugby Union Player
* Wally Holmes, England international rugby union player
*
Trevor Peake
Trevor Peake (born 10 February 1957) is an English retired football player and coach. In his playing career he represented Nuneaton Borough, Lincoln City, Luton Town, and Coventry City, with whom he won the 1987 FA Cup. He went into coaching a ...
, footballer, 1987
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
winner with
Coventry City
Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, Championship, the second tier of the English footbal ...
George Reader
George Reader (22 November 1896 – 13 July 1978) was the fourth man to referee a FIFA World Cup Final, the first Englishman (one of only 10 match officials from the United Kingdom) to do so, and the oldest match official at any World Cup in hi ...
, football referee; officiated in the final game of the
1950 FIFA World Cup
The 1950 FIFA World Cup was the fourth edition of the FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football championship for senior men's national teams and held in Brazil from 24 June to 16 July 1950. The planned 1942 and 1946 World Cups were ...
* Dean Richards, former England Rugby Union player and Rugby Union Coach (born in Nuneaton)
*
Nicki Shaw
Nicola Jayne Shaw (commonly either Nicky Shaw or Nicki Shaw, born 30 December 1981) is an English cricketer and former member of the England women's cricket team. She played for England from 1999 until 2010, making 97 international appearances ...
, a former member of the England Women's Cricket team (born in Nuneaton)
* Andy Sullivan, golfer
*
Adam Whitehead
Adam James Whitehead (born 28 March 1980) is a male former breaststroke swimmer from Coventry, England.
Swimming career
Whitehead competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. There he was eliminated in the qualifying heats of the m ...
, Olympic swimmer
*
Peter Whittingham
Peter Michael Whittingham (; 8 September 1984 – 18 March 2020) was an English professional footballer. His primary position was as a central midfielder, although he operated as a winger on both the left and right, as well as a second-striker ...
, footballer (born in Whitestone, Nuneaton)
*
Nigel Winterburn
Nigel Winterburn (born 11 December 1963) is an English former professional footballer, coach and current television personality for BT Sport.
He played primarily as a left back from 1981 to 2003. He is best known for his role alongside the li ...
, retired footballer
* Jake Dennis, racing driver
*
Jacob Blyth
Jacob Matthew Blyth (14 August 1992) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for Bradford (Park Avenue).
Early life
Blyth was educated at St. Thomas More School & Technical College in his home town of Nuneaton.
Career
E ...
, football forward for
Gateshead
Gateshead () is a large town in northern England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank, opposite Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle to which it is joined by seven bridges. The town contains the Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Millennium Bridge, Sage ...
(born in Nuneaton)
Other
*
Andrew Copson
Andrew James William Copson, FRSA, FCMI, MCIPR (born 19 November 1980) is a Humanist leader and writer. He is the Chief Executive of Humanists UK and the President of Humanists International.
He has worked for a number of civil and human rig ...
, Chief Executive of
Humanists UK
Humanists UK, known from 1967 until May 2017 as the British Humanist Association (BHA), is a charitable organisation which promotes secular humanism and aims to represent "people who seek to live good lives without religious or superstitious be ...
.
* Ian Corder, UK Military Representative to NATO and Lieutenant Governor of Guernsey.
*
William Dorsey
William McTaggart Dorsey (1813 – 16 May 1878) was an English-born Australian medical practitioner who played an active role in the development of Ipswich, Queensland, Ipswich.
He was born at Nuneaton in Warwickshire to Alexander Dorsey and ...
(1813–1878), doctor and Australian pioneer
* Richard Freeman, cryptozoologist (born in Nuneaton)
*
William Gadsby
William Gadsby (1773–1844) was an English Baptist pastor. In addition to pastoring, Gadsby planted churches, and was an early leader of the Strict and Particular Baptist movement in England. Although he was not formally educated, Gadsby was r ...
, (1773–1844) an English Baptist pastor born in Attleborough who wrote many hymns.
*
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...
George Eliot Hospital
George Eliot Hospital is a single site hospital located in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, it is managed by the George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust. It provides a full range of emergency and elective medical services, including maternity services, to the loca ...
, but can be heard on 1386am & 88.9FM & Online
*
BBC Radio Leicester
BBC Radio Leicester is the Local BBC Radio, BBC's local radio station serving the counties of Leicestershire and Rutland.
It broadcasts on frequency modulation, FM, Digital Audio Broadcasting, DAB, digital TV and via BBC Sounds from studios at ...
can be received in the town on 104.9FM.
Written media
The main local newspapers are:
*The ''Nuneaton Telegraph''; a localised sub-edition of the ''
Coventry Telegraph
The ''Coventry Telegraph'' is a local English tabloid newspaper. It was founded as ''The Midland Daily Telegraph'' in 1891 by William Isaac Iliffe, and was Coventry's first daily newspaper. Sold for half a penny, it was a four-page broadsheet ne ...
'', it was launched in 1992 (when the aforementioned Tribune switched from daily to weekly production).
*The ''
Nuneaton News
The Nuneaton News, formerly the ''Heartland Evening News'' is a paid tabloid newspaper serving Nuneaton, North Warwickshire, Hinckley and the surrounding areas. The key areas reached by the Nuneaton News are Nuneaton and Bedworth.
Founding
T ...
'' (originally known as the ''Evening News'' upon launch and then the ''Heartland Evening News''): Owned by Reach plc, it is a paid-for
weekly newspaper
A weekly newspaper is a general-news or Current affairs (news format), current affairs publication that is issued once or twice a week in a wide variety broadsheet, magazine, and electronic publishing, digital formats. Similarly, a biweekly new ...
, published every Wednesday.
Television news
The Nuneaton area is covered on regional TV News by:
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BBC Midlands Today
''Midlands Today'' is the BBC's regional television news service for the West Midlands. It was launched in 1964 and is presented by Mary Rhodes, Nick Owen, Elizabeth Glinka, Rebecca Wood and Shefali Oza.
Overview
''Midlands Today'' is produ ...
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ITV News Central
''ITV News Central'' is a British television news service for The Midlands, broadcast and produced by ITV Central.
History
Launched on Friday 1 January 1982, replacing ''ATV Today'', ''Central News'' was initially a pan-regional service base ...
Twin towns
The borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth is twinned with the following towns:
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Roanne
Roanne (; frp, Rouana; oc, Roana) is a commune in the Loire department, central France.
It is located northwest of Lyon on the river Loire. It has an important Museum, the ''Musée des Beaux-arts et d'Archéologie Joseph-Déchelette'' (Fren ...
,
Loire
The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône ...
,
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (ARA; ; frp, Ôvèrgne-Rôno-Ârpes; oc, Auvèrnhe Ròse Aups; it, Alvernia-Rodano-Alpi) is a region in southeast-central France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions; it resulted from the merger of Au ...
, France
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Guadalajara
Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the list of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Me ...
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Guadalajara
Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the list of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Me ...
Cottbus
Cottbus (; Lower Sorbian: ''Chóśebuz'' ; Polish: Chociebuż) is a university city and the second-largest city in Brandenburg, Germany. Situated around southeast of Berlin, on the River Spree, Cottbus is also a major railway junction with exten ...
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Brandenburg
Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a states of Germany, state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an ar ...